Magic Johnson was a triple double machine 6-9 point guard. There will not be any one reaching “NEAR” Michael Jordan level anytime soon, but is there anyone who can reach near Magic Johnson? Magic has 138 career triple doubles in the regular season and 30 triple doubles in the playoffs from a career 190 playoff games. His career averages are 19.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 11.2 assists. Those are ridiculous numbers for anyone to obtain. What players today have the skills to do that?

"I haven't stopped working out really since May," Griffin said. "It's been every day, sneaking it in whenever I can." Griffin says it's frustrating for him to think that the NBA games may be interrupted after his first season playing in the league. Griffin missed all of the 2009-10 season with a broken kneecap after he had been the No. 1 draft pick out of Oklahoma. "Now my first three seasons, I could play 82 games," Griffin said. "So, we'll see what happens."

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Last year was overwhelmingly positive for the NBA.

The sporting world was galvanized by Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, and LeBron James joining forces and becoming the ‘Heatles’ in Miami.

Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd’s hard work was rewarded with an NBA championship, guaranteeing both immediate entry into the Hall of Fame when they retire.

Derrick Rose won the MVP award, leading the Chicago Bulls to the league’s best regular season record and a place in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder took another step winning two playoff series before falling to Nowitzki and Kidd’s Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.

The Memphis Grizzlies made the playoffs and upset the San Antonio Spurs. After years of futility, the Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers were relevant and entertaining.

There are other storylines I’m missing.

For instance, high on this list is the emergence of Blake Griffin, whose aerial antics reminded the world there’s a professional basketball squad in Los Angeles not called the Lakers.

(And this squad, the Clippers, can compete and delight despite being owned by the twisted and incompetent Donald Sterling.)

Suppose there’s a lockout. One that wipes out the entire season. Griffin, who missed 2009 with injury, will have played just eighty-two games in his first three seasons.

Fans would have to wait a year to see Griffin assault the rim. Fans would have to wonder what Griffin would do to defend his crown at the 2012 Slam Dunk Contest. And fans, the purists, would have to wait a year to see Griffin’s above average passing and skill-set develop.

This is tragic. And just another thing Commissioner David Stern, the owners, Union Head Billy Hunter, and the players are risking with their posturing and rhetoric.

I hope they know what they’re doing. Griffin missing another year should be a last resort.
--Oly Sandor.

The stretch 4 business is serious business. Basketball purists have been complaining about the lack of quality at the center position for years now. They’re right. Look further down – the power forward position has also evolved in to this stretch 4 trend. What is a stretch 4, you ask? He’s a tall guy, usually 6-9 or taller, and plays from the perimeter. He barely posts up preferring to shoot instead of being a bruiser.

People are getting hyped over the film “Fast Five” starring Vin Diesel as opposed to even thinking about the big surprises in fantasy basketball this season. I am doing just that. I’m here for you guys. I got your back. Go check out the film and tell me where Michelle Rodriguez ends up. Then come back and read this article to prepare for next season. Some money is on the line. Get some advantage right here if you’re lazy to do some research for yourself.

Blake Griffin is concerned with the way Donald Sterling manages the Clippers and is monitoring the situation, according to sources.

Sterling recently testified in Elgin Baylor's lawsuit against the Clippers for wrongful termination and the owner also had a mishap related to an advertisement for Black History Month that was actually scheduled for March and included Griffin's picture.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Good for Blake Griffin. He has recognized the obvious: the Los Angeles Clippers’ greatest weakness is owner Donald Sterling.

After all, The Don has been embroiled in sexual harassment and discrimination suits, refuses to honour contracts of coaches and executives that he fires, and is more concerned with winning making money than winning.

Simply put, he’s a scumbag. And great teams typically have great owners. Not scumbags.

For instance, the San Antonio Spurs have a partnership of first-class businessman. The Boston Celtics owner is all class. And Jerry Buss, despite his idiosyncrasies and poor decisions, is perfect for the glitz and glamour of the Los Angeles Lakers.

So Griffin is right to try to use his skill and star power to initiate change at the top. Championship teams have stability and sanity at the top.

They don’t have an owner who is so cheap he won’t pay his assistant coach’s cancer bills when the team’s medical provider refuses to do so.

The Don must reform his ways if he wants to sign the NBA’s brightest young star to a multi-year extension. Even better, perhaps he has to finally sell the Clippers if his team wants to re-sign Griffin.

And this, not the highlight reel dunks or headlines, would be Griffin’s greatest accomplishment.

I come in peace, but I’ll talk about this. This has to be addressed. Welcome to LeBron’s new nightmare. The Miami Heat is getting $hi#$ed on by the full media blitz. It’s not over. It’s never going to be over with the public onslaught. There is more to come, but no one has mentioned this particular item. I write this with full sincerity - LBJ will not win MVP ever again. This is a bold claim, but there are many reasons to see why.

You’ve seen Kenny Smith pull a ‘Bundini’ and rep for Blake Griffin like he was former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali.

You’ve seen the choir pump up the Los Angeles crowd by belting out the R. Kelly classic ‘I believe I can fly’.

And you’ve seen Griffin leap the hood of a car, catch a Baron Davis alley-oop, and throw down a fierce two-handed jam, which won the Clippers superstar the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest.

However, Griffin didn’t invent the car leap. He simply mastered it.

A few years ago, Lakers great Kobe Bryant made news when he jumped an Aston Martin. ‘The Black Mamba’ didn’t dunk a basketball, but his aerial antics –despite reportedly being aided by special effects- impressed.

Watch the clips and tell us in the comment box below if Griffin or Bryant did the best job hurdling a car.

With the 2011 Sprite Slam Dunk Contest right around the corner, dunk fans have been wondering just what this year's field is going to do in the big show. Check out the video below to hear this year's four high-flyers talk about All-Star Saturday's aerial showdown. Let us know who you think is going to take the crown this year by dropping a comment at the bottom of the page.

The Lakers (30-12) were also outrebounded and outmuscled, part of the reason Odom grabbed Griffin's jersey after Griffin bulled into him while getting position after a free throw in the final seconds.

Griffin wasn't pleased with the jersey grab and neither was Baron Davis, who started jawing at Odom, which led to some seriously harsh words between Davis and Odom as four players got ejected (Griffin, Davis, Odom and, curiously, Artest, whose apparent crime was trying to pull Odom away from the fray).

Lately, I’ve been hearing that the “Franchise Player” concept is dead in the NBA. There is no such thing as a franchise player. There are super teams instead. I’m here to tell all of you that you’re wrong – dead wrong. The way teams are built in this league calls for a franchise player. The player is usually extremely talented and skilled with an ability to get numbers.There are only 12 or so players on team. One player can make a huge difference. I’ll explain why this concept will not die.

"It's tough because it's the nature of the business,'' Davis said in an interview with FanHouse before the Clippers' 108-103 win over Phoenix on Sunday about the trade rumors surrounding him. "But it's tough because I don't want to leave. I'm here. I came here for a reason. If I were to be traded, I just think that I just never really got a chance to do what I was signed here to do.''

The top 5 are only reserved for the heavy hitters. This section is made up of fresh faces. Everyone is so wrapped up into the point guards and dying centers that not many are noticing the power forwards. What’s up with that? The position is filled with plenty of young talent making it almost as deep as the point guards. The only thing I noticed is the lack of good defensive power forwards. Stats are up to date as of December 2, 2010.